Hemineglect

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Hemineglect also known as unilateral spatial neglect, hemispatial neglect, hemi-inattention, hemisensory, parietal neglect or spatial neglect (Kerkhoff, 2000), is a condition in which patients are unable to attend and respond to the contralesional side of space (Dijkerman, Webling, ter Wal, Groet, & van Zandvoort, 2003). Hemineglect is characterized by the lack of spatial awareness, most commonly on the left hemispace (Parton & Malhotra & Husain, 2004). The most common form of hemineglect, is that of patients who have right hemisphere lesions commonly found to damage the ‘where’ pathway, most commonly after a stroke. These kinds of patients tend to neglect the left hand side of space (Driver & Mattingley, 1998). Although it is not restricted to right hemispheric lesions in the ‘where visual pathway’, it is more predominant and tends to be harder to rehabilitate back to full recovery (Parton; Malhotra; Husain, 2004). Hemineglect does not just present itself visually, but also through other senses such as motor neglect, auditory neglect, representational neglect and also personal neglect (Plummer, Morris, & Dunai, 2003). Hemineglect is not a result of loss of sensory disorder. It is not uncommon to receive left hemisphere lesions or trauma and gain hemineglect. It does seem however that it is easier to treat and rehabilitate patients to a full recovery if this damage has occurred, compared to right hemisphere damage. Hemineglect is present when there is damage to the dorsal/ where visual pathway in the brain which leads from the occipital lobe of the brain to the parietal lobe. The ‘where visual pathway’ is concerned with constructing three dimensional representations of the environment and helps our brain to navigate where things... ... middle of paper ... ... sight: A case of hemineglect. In J. A. Ogden, Fractured Minds (pp. 113-136). New York: Oxford University Press. Parton, A., Malhotra, P., & Husain, M. (2004). Hemispatial Neglect. J Neurol Neurosurg Psychiatry, 13-21. Plummer, P., Morris, M. E., & Dunai, J. (2003). Assessment of Unilateral Neglect. Physical Therapy , 732-740. Pouget, A., & Sejnowski, T. J. (2001). Simulating a Lesion in a Basis Function Model of Spatial. Psychological Review 108:3, 653-673. Rossetti, Y., Rode G., Pisella, L., Farne, A., Li, L., Boisson, D., & Perenin, M.-T. (1998). Prism Adaptation to a rightward optical deviation rehabilitates left hemispatial neglect. Nature, 166-168. Tilikete, C., Rode, G., Rossetti, Y., Pichon, J., Ling, L., & Boisson, D. (2001). Prism adaptation to rightward optical deviation improves postural imbalance in left-hemiparetic patients. Current Biology, 524-528.

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